Fears linger in language of Delta draft plan

STOCKTON - City leaders reported progress Tuesday resolving a dispute with a new state agency that they fear will disrupt Stockton's ability to grow as it sees fit.

Alex Breitler

STOCKTON - City leaders reported progress Tuesday resolving a dispute with a new state agency that they fear will disrupt Stockton's ability to grow as it sees fit.

The Delta Stewardship Council is tasked with writing a long-term plan governing the river estuary through the year 2100. While not yet final, the draft plan gives the council some authority over projects that could be proposed by a city or county - another layer of bureaucratic red tape, in critics' view.

City leaders have feared the new oversight would apply to development projects already approved within Stockton's sphere of influence and could jeopardize developers' ability to finance those projects.

New language in the seventh draft of the plan is an improvement, while still not as clear as it could be, consultant Mike Niblock told the City Council at a meeting Tuesday night.

"I don't believe they're going to be able to give us a blanket guarantee that they are not going to have something to say about projects that we're proposing in Stockton if, in fact, it might have some sort of effect on the Delta," Niblock said. "But getting greater clarity ... is something we should demand."

The city supported legislation by Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan, D-Alamo, to provide that clarity. But the legislation failed last summer.

The Delta council said at that time that several notable projects - such as Mountain House, Lathrop's River Islands and the Sanctuary development in Stockton west of Interstate 5 - would be exempt from the plan.

This was not, however, put in writing to Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston's satisfaction.

"My concern is, I don't believe it until I see it, and see it in writing that is very explicit," Johnston said Tuesday. "... Why should we trust them to make it right for those communities who have already done the planning?"

Half of Stockton is within the outer perimeter of the Delta, known as the secondary zone. That makes the city ground zero for implementation of the Delta Plan, the mayor said.

City Councilwoman Susan Eggman said she thinks the new draft language addresses the city's concerns.

Eggman said the larger issue will be the plan's water policies. The plan may ultimately include Gov. Jerry Brown's $14 billion twin tunnels proposal to bypass the Delta, another concern about which the City Council was briefed Tuesday.

As for the land-use issue, Dan Ray, chief deputy executive officer of the Delta council, told the City Council on Tuesday that the new plan will set up an efficient process that does not unnecessarily burden cities or counties.